Louis gutekunst



draad sata @anni @para Letters Patent No. 98,953, dated January 18, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN' BREAKWATIERS.l

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same I, LoUIs G UfrnKUNs'r, of Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, have iuvented an Improvement in Breakwaters, of which the followingis a specication.

Nature and Object of my Invention.

My invention rela-tes to that class ofl breakwaters which are erected on sandy coasts, to prevent the inroad of the sea, and consists of a wall and a supporting-buttress so constructed as to be readily and economically erected, with but little labor, and without the necessity of employing skilled mechanics.

Description of the Accompanying Dra/wing.

Figure l is an elevation, partly. in section, of my improved breakwater;

Figure 2, a plan view Figure 3, a-detached view, drawn to an enlarged scale, showing the manner in which the timbers are fitted together; and l Figure 4, a modification of "iig 3.

General Description'. `Before proceeding to particularly describe my invention, I will' refer to the necessity, which exists on many sand y coasts, of prevcntin g the gradual encroachment of the sea, which results from the constant remoral of portions of the land by the action ofthe waves.

The portion of the land most affected generally1 lies betweenl high and low-water marks, where the waves strike the beach, pass .up the inclined surface and recede, carrying with them particles 0f sand, which are washed away by the under-currents.

Owing to theunstahle character of the foundation, it is impossible, at vany reasonableexpeuse, to erect breakwaters of masonry or other heavy material, and it has heretofore been customary to build or anchor caissons, weighted with stones, on the shore, near the lowwvater line.

This mode, while eii'ective in most instances, is ob jectionable, as it requires the services, in building and securing the caissons, of expert mechanics, so that the erection of a breakwater of' any extent, by priva-te parties, is seldom practicable.

My improved breakwater, which is` open to none of these objections, consists of two portions, :iframe-buttre'ss, A, and a wall, B. y

The buttress consists of a series of horizontal beams, a., each supported on and secured to' -piles b1), which are driven, at suitable distances apart, vertically into the sand, to such a depth as may be necessary to obtain a tirm support.

' The inner end of each beam ais generally level with or embedded in the sand, but the outer end, which extends forward over the ,inclined portion of the beach, is at such a height above the latter as to bear against the cent-ral portion of the wall B, the lower edge'of which rests upon the beach at the lowwater line. l

The wall is composed of sections c, each of which consists of a series of heavyplanks, d d, arranged side by side, to present a continuous surface, and securely bolted to crossepieces e e', the ends of which are cut away, as shown in iig. 3, so as to overlap or under-lap the` ends of the cross-pieces of the adjacent sections to which they are bolted.

The outer ends of the beams a are cut away to receive the central cross-pieces e', or, to avoid weakening lthe beams, the cross-piece e may rest upon the ends of the beams a, as shown in 4.

The wall is securely braced by stay-rods t' t', exten`ding from each section to the beams a a, which support the same, as shown in figs. 1 and 2.

When the tide is low, the waves will strike the lower portion of the wall with but little force, which the wall will be enabled to eiectually resist by the stays 'i t', but as the tide rises, and the waves dash with a greater force against the wall, they will strike the central portion ofthe same, the beams a receiving the full force of the 'shock and eiiectually resisting it.

It will be apparent, that owing to the relative arrangement of the buttress and the wall, the latter may be much, lighter in weight, and will require less bracing and support than the ordinary wooden breakwaters in which the wall is caused to bear the full force of the waves. f

The principal advantages of my improved break water, however, are theeasc with which it can be, constructed at points distant from the coast, and transf ported to the latter; the. speed and facility with which it can be erected; and'its comparatively small cost.

Owing to the limited size of the sections c, they can be readily transported, either by land or water, from the place where they are constructed, which is generally at some distance from the point where they are erected, where facilities for their manufacture can seldom be obtained.I v

The bnttress cau be erected by workmen of ordinary skill, and the work can be prosecuted without interruption during any state of the tide, `and after the butti-ess is erected, and the sections G are prepared, the latter can be secured iu their positions with great rapidity, 'and without any other facilities than those which can alwayspbe secured at the place of erection.

A breakwater thus constructed, may be erected at a small expense, and the rapid and extensive inroads 'of the sea, which take place annually on exposed coasts, may thus be eiifectually prevented.

A breakwater, consisting of vabuttress A, constructed as described, and a vertical wall, B, bearing at its centre against the horizontal buttress-beams a, andbraced and scoured to the latter, as set forth.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

Witnesses: Y LOUIS GUTEKUNST.

' CHARLES E. FOSTER,

, HARRY SMITH. 

